Stringing patients on

There's an idea among some dentists that you don't tell patients about all the treatment they need because, if you do, they will be shocked and leave the practice.Let's say for example a new patient attends for an examination and you find that their mouth is broken down and to rebuild it properly will require twelve crowns.Some dentists advocate that instead of telling them about the twelve crowns you string the patient along by telling them they need one or two and a few fillings. Supposedly, under this strange logic, in a few years time when you have gained their trust you then tell them about what they really need.There are problems with this approach:

1. You are knowingly deceiving patients.
2. The longer you leave it to tell the truth the harder it gets.
3. A patient could rightfully ask you why you didn't tell them the truth up front.

My suggestion is to tell a patient about everything they need up front but do it right. More on that in future blog posts.